Contractor Gives Small Backyard Patios Three Different Looks

The concrete patios shown here, designed by Matt Zook of J&H Decorative Concrete, are all small in size (around 1,000 square feet or less) yet have very distinctive looks through the use of different shapes, patterns, and coloring techniques. They also are very budget friendly, averaging about $10 per square foot. Here's how each look was achieved.

A 'Natural Look'

For this project, the client wanted a very natural-looking patio, with no square control joints. So instead of saw cutting straight joints, Zook cut the joints by hand to create sections that look like large pieces of flagstone. He cut the joints at approximately the same spacing as he would regular control joints, but just made the lines curvilinear. He also textured around the cut with a small texture roller to soften the look.

For the field: Integral color is rosemary from Solomon Colors. The pattern is old granite seamless slate with two colors of release agent from Brickform: dark walnut and charcoal.

Brick border: Each brick is 10 inches wide with a slate pattern. The color, which is lighter than the rest of the patio, was customized to match a stone border around the windows of the house.

Patio size: 18x20 feet

Price: $10/sf, plus $12-14 per lineal foot for contrasting border

Clean and Modern

On this job, the customer wanted a clean-cut pattern, with nothing random. She also wanted border for a clean-cut edge.

For the field: Sidewalk slate pattern, with two sizes of stone. Integral color is pewter from Increte Systems, with a charcoal release from Brickform.

Border: Pattern is old granite seamless slate stained with SureCrete Eco-stain in black. Colors were chosen to complement the house.

Patio size: 18x22 feet

Price: $10/sf, plus $12-14 per lineal foot for contrasting border

Two-Tiered Patio

This client wanted a two-tiered patio that would accommodate an area for a gazebo. For the shape, Zook curved the patio to create "pockets" for flowerbeds. The step from the top tier to the circular lower tier is also curved to make it flow in harmony with the circle. A textured form liner was used on the front edge of the step.

For the field: Integral color is rosemary from Solomon Colors. The pattern is Arizona flagstone, with dark walnut and charcoal release agents from Brickform. Dark walnut was the main release, with the charcoal used to highlight the stones.

Border: Old granite seamless slate. Border color is the same as the field color.

Patio size: 30x35 square feet

Price: $10/sf

(Note: This was the least expensive project because the field and border colors are the same.)